


The Fist of Hydra

by PlanetClare



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Winter Soldier (Comics)
Genre: Bucky Barnes Feels, Bucky Barnes Has Issues, Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, Bucky Barnes Remembers, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Conflict, Cryogenics, Cryostasis, Cybernetics, Drama, Gen, Hydra (Marvel), Jealousy, Mission Fic, The Fist of Hydra, Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-18
Updated: 2017-05-18
Packaged: 2018-11-02 01:44:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10934403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PlanetClare/pseuds/PlanetClare
Summary: The life of Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier, is filled with very dark days. Jack Rollins has it in for Alexander Pierce's prize pet.





	The Fist of Hydra

“How fortuitous,” Armin Zola said, elated to see the body of Sergeant James Buchanan Barnes lying on an operating table in his laboratory. When the soldier fell from the sky, the impact of his landing gave him a concussion and amnesia, which Zola found most advantageous.

The young man did not know who or where he was when he finally regained consciousness. He lay in a state of quiet confusion as Zola’s assistants sedated him and went about stemming the flow of blood from the wound where his left arm used to be.

Fitted with a powerful cybernetic prosthesis, the soldier was dubbed ‘The Winter Soldier – The Fist of Hydra’ and trained to be a merciless killing machine. His already stellar skills as a sniper, scout, and reconnaissance tactician were honed to an elite level, which made him the deadliest assassin in the world.

In spite of his talents, the soldier was used sparingly. He was in and out of cryostasis for decades and only awakened for assignments which required his singular skill set or to briefly train other Hydra assassins who showed promise.

The training sessions involved the soldier teaching his sniper skills as well as hand-to-hand combat sparring matches. If the trainee held his own against the soldier, the trainee was considered satisfactory. If the trainee were able to best the soldier, he would be considered a huge success. A few had come close, but none had beaten the soldier.

While he was kept in cryostasis, the soldier’s trainees carried out routine missions which required less skill and expertise. However, the soldier’s value was in his ability to execute the more delicate, high level missions.

Because of his unique talents, the Winter Soldier was a highly coveted asset, which is why over the decades, the access codes to awaken him from cryostasis and program him were sold to the highest bidder. Seventy years passed as he was in and out of cryo until he eventually ended up as the prize possession of U.S. Secretary Alexander Pierce.

Pierce was a driven man. In Washington, D.C., he served on many government committees and ingratiated himself with all of the movers and shakers with one goal in mind – to plant himself in the core of government to better serve Hydra. No one other than his fellow Hydra loyalists knew that he was secretly the leader of Hydra in the U.S. Thus, from his position as a member of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s oversight committee, he knew the peacekeeping organization’s every move and was able to undermine it from within.

Like the soldier’s previous bosses, Pierce used him sparingly in part because Zola found that the longer between cryostasis and mind wipes, the more the young man began to remember his past. Nonetheless, when he awakened the soldier, Pierce expected nothing less than successful missions. U.S. Hydra had paid a handsome price for the soldier, and the Secretary demanded results.

When it came to covert operations, Pierce needed someone he could trust to lead Strike, the special ops team within S.H.I.E.L.D. So, he put his faith in an agent named Brock Rumlow who had risen through the ranks and was highly regarded.

Rumlow was a handsome man with dark brown hair and eyes. Of average height and build, he was solid muscle from head to toe. Rumlow had an extensive background in special ops and like Pierce, he was secretly a member of Hydra. He was a ruthless man but in spite of his gruff exterior, he could be quite friendly at times with the rest of his Strike team. Reliable and loyal, Rumlow did not falter on his missions as Strike’s team leader. When Pierce needed something done, he turned to Rumlow.

Strike’s second in command was an agent named Jack Rollins. Like Rumlow, Rollins was a handsome man but taller with a much larger build. He too had an extensive background in special ops but unlike Rumlow, he was serious at all times. Rollins had only one facial expression – a scowl which looked all the more sinister because of a long scar which stretched from the corner of his lower lip down to his jawline. He was decidedly unfriendly and rarely spoke at all.

Of the many things that Rollins disliked, he disliked the Winter Soldier the most. Rollins had worked hard to rise in the ranks of Strike and knew that the soldier was Pierce’s pet. He was jealous and resented the soldier’s status as the Fist of Hydra.

Before leaving on a mission to eliminate one of Pierce’s longtime political foes, Rollins heard the Secretary praising the soldier for his successful completion of a previous mission. This caused Rollins’ blood to boil. In spite of his loyalty to Hydra, Rollins wanted to see the soldier for once fail and incur the wrath of Pierce. So, he put a devious plan into motion.

*  *  *  *  *  *

Senator Jim Owens disagreed with Secretary Pierce on many issues and recently made it clear that he was determined to have one of the Secretary’s pet projects defunded. Incensed, Pierce decided to have the Senator eliminated at an upcoming speaking engagement.

On the day of the event, the soldier was removed from his cryostasis chamber, programed using his activation codes, and given his directive by Pierce: assassinate Senator Owens during his speech. To assist the soldier, a small group of disguised Strike team members would accompany him including Rollins. Rumlow was expected to accompany Captain America on a stealth mission, so Rollins was given the lead.

As the team rode in the back of an unmarked black van, the soldier stared blankly at the van wall across from him. From the corner of his eye, he could see Rollins glaring at him. Because of that day’s mind wipe, the soldier did not recall encountering the agent before, but the agent’s hate was born from years of watching the soldier receive Pierce’s praise.

‘Today, everything changes,’ Rollins thought.

The plan seemed simple enough: plain-clothed Strike agents would accompany the soldier to the auditorium and subdue Senator Owens’ security. The Winter Soldier would enter the building and position himself in the rafters in order to gain a clear shot at the Senator. Once the politician was eliminated, the soldier would slip out of the building and be whisked away by the awaiting van.

Upon entering the auditorium, the soldier was handed a loaded rifle and silently positioned himself high above the audience toward the back of the building. As the Senator spoke, the soldier lined him up in his rifle’s scope. Just as the soldier’s finger tightened on the trigger, there was a loud clatter of folding chairs crashing to the floor in a nearby alcove.

Senator Owens jerked in the direction of the commotion just as the soldier’s bullet whizzed past him and nicked the mayor standing behind him. Realizing that he had missed, the soldier made a hasty retreat as the mayor screamed in pain and the crowd chaotically raced toward the exits.

The soldier climbed through a tiny window in the rafters and jumped onto the roof of the awaiting van. Rolling off of it and landing behind it, the soldier climbed into the back and was driven away.

Sitting as he had on the ride to the auditorium, the soldier stared at the wall across from him. However, this time, he had an angry look on his face.

Although Rollins maintained his usual scowl, he secretly enjoyed creating the commotion which distracted the Senator and caused the soldier to miss his target. He knew that Secretary Pierce would be furious with his pet, and Rollins looked forward to seeing the punishment which was sure to come.

*  *  *  *  *  *

When the Winter Soldier and the Strike unit returned to their secret facility, the soldier was escorted into a room which was nearly empty except for two chairs. All of the walls were made of brick and next to the door, there was a two-way mirror.

As Pierce entered the room, Rumlow positioned himself on the other side of the mirror so as to observe the debriefing.

Sitting in one of the chairs, the soldier did not look up at his approaching boss. Nonetheless, he knew the Secretary was not happy.

“Mission report,” Pierce said.

The soldier searched his mind for what happened as he himself was not quite sure.

“Mission report!” the Secretary demanded.

“I was in position,” the soldier began still not making eye contact. “There was a noise and...I missed my target...”

The slap across the left side of his face caught the soldier off guard.

“You missed? You MISSED?” Pierce yelled as he struck the soldier again.

The second blow was so hard that it caused blood to stream from the soldier’s left nostril.

“Look at me!” Pierce sneered.

The soldier slowly looked up to meet his boss’ gaze with a left eye which had turned red.

Grabbing a handful of the soldier’s long hair, Pierce yanked his locks hard enough to give him an instant headache.

“I sent you on a delicate mission, and you failed! You FAILED! Do you have any idea how difficult it will be to eliminate the Senator now?” he growled.

The soldier did not respond but prepared himself for the next blow. When it came, the blood flowed from his right nostril as well, and his left eye began to swell shut.

“Get him out of my sight!” Pierce demanded as he strode toward the door.

Joining him as he passed, Rumlow looked at the Secretary without speaking.

“When I get Owens’ updated schedule, send him out again but next time, make sure he doesn’t fail me.”

“Roger that, Sir,” Rumlow replied and then returned to the brick room.

The Secretary proceeded to his office to draft a letter to Senator Owens to express his shock and sorrow that there was an attempt on the politician’s life.

Standing once again behind the two-way mirror, Rumlow watched as Rollins took advantage of the opportunity. Strike’s second in command kicked the second chair out of the way and faced the soldier.

“Stand up,” he barked.

The soldier did not move. He took orders from Pierce alone and ignored the Strike agent.

“I said STAND UP!” Rollins repeated.

The soldier stared straight ahead and remained still.

Grabbing him by the hair, Rollins yanked the soldier from his chair and threw him against the opposite wall.

As the soldier raised his left arm and prepared to punch his attacker, four guards aimed their rifles at him.

The soldier froze knowing that the men would not hesitate to shoot him if he struck back.

With this to his advantage, Rollins began to savagely punch and kick the soldier.

In spite of the beating, the soldier uttered no sound. The assault continued until Rollins eventually became tired.

With the soldier barely clinging to consciousness, Rollins stepped back to watch him on his hands and knees with blood dripping from his mouth as he gasped for air.

“Stand up, you freak!” Rollins sneered.

The soldier felt that he could not stand even if he wished to do so.

‘I could do this every day and then wipe him, and he’d never remember it,’ the agent thought to himself.

Rollins slowly turned and strode toward the door. As he entered the hallway, he was met by Rumlow.

“Don’t you think that was a bit excessive?” the Strike team leader asked.

“I’d say it’s well overdue,” the agent replied.

“You don’t decide that,” Rumlow informed him. “Don’t let it happen again.”

Rollins sneered at his superior for a moment and then proceeded down the hallway.

Entering the room, Rumlow looked down at the soldier whose blood was pooling on the floor.

“Get him up and put him on ice,” he instructed the guards.

As one man grabbed the soldier’s right bicep, the soldier jerked the arm away from him. The other three guards took a step closer, each aiming his rifle at the soldier’s head.

The soldier froze for a moment and then struggled to stand. When he was on his feet, the guard forcibly removed the soldier’s tunic. Another guard walked to a corner of the room, picked up a pail of water, and doused the soldier washing most of his shed blood down a drain in the middle of the floor.

The soldier was then led at gun point down the hall to a room which contained a large chair with metal bands on its armrests. He was fitted with a rigid vest which bore monitors for his pulse and heart rate and was seated in the chair. A technician approached him and inserted a needle into a vein in his right hand to run the intravenous drip which provided nourishment and fluids while the soldier was in cryostasis. Standing, he was led to his chamber and stepped in. Sleep came quickly as the chamber’s glass fogged over.

*  *  *  *  *  *

A few months later, the soldier was awakened for a second attempt at eliminating Senator Owens. The politician was scheduled to appear at a rally, and Pierce wanted the Winter Soldier positioned inside a nearby building.

“Make sure that nothing goes wrong this time,” he instructed Rumlow.

“You have my word, Sir,” the Strike leader assured him.

The soldier’s cryostasis chamber was opened and he was relieved of the monitoring vest and IV. He was dragged to the chair and once seated, his arms were strapped down by the bands before two halves of an electric contraption were lowered into place and clamped on his head. With the two halves in place, the machine hummed into action. As electrodes shot through the soldier’s brain, his blood curdling screams could be heard throughout the facility. The sound made the corners of Rollins’ mouth slightly curl into a smile. He as happy to hear Pierce’s pet suffer.

With the soldier’s activation codes read, Secretary Pierce gave him his mission. The young man dressed in his Kevlar-laced tunic and mask and was led down a hallway toward an awaiting transport van.

As he approached the exit door, he was met by Rumlow and Rollins who had not seen the soldier since the last attempt at assassinating Senator Owens.

Rollins was intrigued by how well the soldier had healed. His face bore no scars or evidence of the beating he had heaped upon the soldier, and his blank expression seemed to convey that he did not remember it.

Just as the disguised Strike unit was about to exit the facility, Rollins realized that his assumption may have been wrong. Before he could react, he was sucker punched by the lightning fast speed of the soldier’s cybernetic left arm.

With his jaw nearly dislocated, Rollins was sent flying into a nearby wall.

As the Strike agents trained their guns on the soldier, Rumlow walked over to his partner who landed on the floor.

“You know you had that coming, right?” he asked as he extended his right hand to help him up.

Rollins did not respond, instead glaring at the soldier as he held his right hand to his face.

“Come on. You’re sitting this one out,” Rumlow said as he helped Rollins to his feet and gave him a push down the hall.

Turning, Rumlow walked up to the soldier, stood toe-to-toe with him, and stared into the large blue eyes which loomed over the dark mask.

“So, you _do_ remember some things.”

The soldier did not respond.

“Do that again, and I’ll shoot you myself,” he warned.

The two men stared at each other for a long moment.

Turning on his heels, Rumlow growled “Moving out!”

The men and the soldier stepped toward the awaiting transport and climbed in.

Once inside the van, Rumlow searched the soldier’s face for some indication that the punch was retaliation for his beating by Rollins months ago.

‘Could he have remembered that after his mind was wiped?’ the team leader wondered.

Meanwhile, the soldier considered his actions as well. He was not sure why he punched the man because he was not entirely certain who the man was. Yet, he felt strongly compelled to lash out at him and did so.

Upon arriving at the designated building not far from the rally, the soldier positioned himself with a powerful long range rifle in hand. He lined up his target, took the shot, and completed his mission.

When the soldier and the Strike unit returned to Pierce’s secret facility, the Secretary was already there waiting for them.

“Mission report,” Pierce said.

“The target has been eliminated,” the unmasked soldier informed him without meeting his gaze.

“Good work, soldier!” Pierce replied congratulating his prize possession while an angry Rollins looked on with his jaw still swollen.

Rumlow watched as the expression on Rollins’ face grew even more menacing.

“I knew I could count on you, agent,” Pierce said to Rumlow. “Now, I have a sympathy letter to compose for the widow. Put him on ice,” he said referring to the soldier.

The soldier was led to the room containing his cryostasis chamber. He was stripped of his tunic, fitted with his monitoring vest, and placed on an IV drip. As he began to lose consciousness, he felt conflicted about his mission feeling that although it was a success, he had somehow done something terribly wrong. He slowly glanced over at one of the guards who was a blonde, blue-eyed young man, and it sparked what seemed like a distant memory of name he once knew...

...was it Stan...or Scott...?

            ...perhaps it was...Steve...

**Author's Note:**

> © 2016 Planet Press
> 
> The Marvel characters herein are the property of Marvel Comics which retains the rights.


End file.
